Ηρακλής Οικονόμου

Today, you will allow me to wear my political scientist's hat on top of my radio producer's hat! And you will also allow me to honour the most prominent Greek political scientist, Nikos Poulantzas, who died exactly 46 years ago, on October 3, 1979. His contribution to the theory of the state remains...

Today, we are celebrating the numerous folk songs performed and recorded by an exceptional vocalist born exactly 63 years ago, on October 2, 1962. He stands out thanks to not only his special timbre but also his ethos and modesty. And it is no coincidence that great maestros such as Dimitris Papadimitriou,...

Today, October 1st, is the International Day of Older Persons, i.e. the perfect occasion to remind ourselves of how important older people are and how much they deserve our attention and respect. Our destination? Songs about “yiayia” and “pappou”, about grandmothers, grandfathers and their fairytales, about t...

Today, we will be remembering a popular vocalist that passed away exactly 15 years ago, on September 30, 2010 and that helped elevate many beautiful “laiko” songs with her deep expressive voice. Doukissa (The Duchess) marked not only the popular song discography but also the music entertainment of ...

Filippos Nikolaou gives a heart to his beloved one, Arleta asks her heart to be courageous, Manolis Hatzimanolis cannot live without his little heart, Themis Adamantidis points straight to the heart and Dionysis Tsaknis asks his heart to write its own fairytale. The common thread of today’s track l...

Ending today, this mini tribute of GME to Greek songs and music for theatre highlighted two interlinked facts: One, that theatre constitutes a constant source of inspiration for the country’s leading composers. And two, that these composers have a truly multi-faceted repertoire, consisting not only o...

Today comes the second part of our tribute to music for theatre, here at GME. Eleni Karaindrou and Nikos Xydakis, Nikos Xydakis and Eleni Karaindrou, two prominent figures of Greek music who have stood out for their melodiousness and sophistication. Yes, it is true that theatre has not been at the center...

Today, tomorrow and on Friday, we shall be enjoying some of the most beautiful pieces of music for theatre, composed by leading Greek composers. Today’s track list, here at GME, includes a collection of songs that were originally conceived to accompany plays on stage. These songs belong primarily t...

Today, here at GME, we continue our tribute to the “Greek” Pablo Neruda by listening to poems of his set to music by composers Vassilis Dimitriou, Christos Gartzos and Giannis Glezos. Neruda, who died exactly 52 years ago, on September 23, 1973, was awarded the 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature. In his...

Today and tomorrow, we will be honouring the memory of a colossal poet from Chile who died on September 23, 1973. Pablo Neruda marked not only world poetry but also the Greek song, as his verse was set to music by leading composers. So, today’s destination? Canto General, by Neruda and Mikis Theodorakis, w...

Today, we will be celebrating Invisible Cities, the masterpiece written by my favourite author, Italo Calvino, who died exactly 40 years ago, on September 19, 1985. And we will be also listening to instrumentals by three exceptional composers, Elias Mastoris, Giorgos Stavrianos, Marios Strofalis, inspired...

Today’s GME is dedicated to Pavlos Fyssas, the musician who was killed by members of a neo-Nazi criminal gang exactly 12 years ago, on September 18, 2013. Dimitris Mystakidis, Active Member, Giorgos Tsigos, Koinoi Thnitoi, Giannis Koutras and Yperastikoi are some of the artists who, today, will be r...

Today, we will be introducing ourselves to the exciting ideas and songs of Greece’s most explicitly political lyricist, who was born exactly 72 years ago, on September 16, 1953. His vision? “Singing is not about expressing yourself individually. When you write, you cannot start with your own experience. It is wrong. You start writing with what you see around you, with what you are a recipient of, and you must try to express it accurately without being individualistic”. Today, we wish Costas Tripolitis happy birthday with a panorama of his rock and art song masterpieces, replete with powerful social messages ... Read more

Today, we will be introducing ourselves to the exciting ideas and songs of Greece’s most explicitly political lyricist, who was born exactly 72 years ago, on September 16, 1953. His vision? “Singing is not about expressing yourself individually. When you write, you cannot start with your own experience. It ...

Giannoulis Halepas, who died exactly 87 years ago on September 15, 1938, is widely regarded as Greece’s greatest sculptor. He came from the island of Tinos and a family of famous marble cutters and sculptors. Halepas studied at the School of Arts in Athens and, in 1873, he left for Munich, under a s...

Throughout the week that ends today, we explored the work of some very talented and perhaps less advertised singers-songwriters who recently released personal albums of theirs and who definitely deserve our attention. Born in the neighborhood of Kesariani in 1987, Vassilis Korakakis has collaborated...

Today is the 11th of September and there are two very sad occasions associated with this day - the 9/11 with the 2001 terrorist attacks against the US, and the “Chilean 9/11” with the 1973 coup d’etat organised by dictator Augusto Pinochet. Today, we will be turning our attention to the latter event...